Rookies rise again as Senators defeat Stars

In a game featuring a flavour of the Ottawa Senators tomorrow and a fair bit of the Senators yesterday, the newcomers carried the day Monday.

The end result was an impressive 4-1 victory against the powerhouse Dallas Stars.

Rookies Max Lajoie and Brady Tkachuk turned a second-period deficit into a third-period lead and the Senators closed out the Stars from there with goals by Mikkel Boedker and Zack Smith.

“It’s kind of hard to explain,” said Lajoie, the unassuming first-year defenceman who has four goals and three assists in his first six National Hockey League games. “I’m not too sure what’s going on right now. I guess I’m just in the right spot at the right time and the guys are making plays for me.”

The Senators also ruined the homecoming for a trio of former Senators: centre Jason Spezza, defenceman Marc Methot and goaltender Ben Bishop.

The Senators, who also knocked off the Los Angeles Kings 5-1 on Saturday, are 3-2-1 overall.

For all the pre-season talk about rebuilding, a fair bit of what has happened in the first six games is beyond the Senators’ wildest dreams.

With 19 seconds remaining in the second, Lajoie skated across over the blue-line and banked a shot off Stars defenceman Julius Honka and past a startled Bishop.

It has been said before, but it needs to be said again: The instant point production is a remarkable development for a defenceman who wasn’t expected to make the team in training camp.

The Senators carried the momentum from Lajoie’s goal into the third period.

Tkachuk, stationed in his office on the cusp of the crease, redirected Dylan DeMelo’s pass over Bishop’s shoulder at the 1:27 mark, enhancing a solid night’s work for Tkachuk and linemates Chris Tierney and Mark Stone.

Tierney and DeMelo have been bright lights since arriving from San Jose in the training camp trade for Erik Karlsson.

Boedker provided some insurance, finishing off hard behind the net work by Matt Duchene to make it 3-1. It was Boedker’s first goal since joining the Senators, also from San Jose, in the summer trade for Mike Hoffman.

Smith put the game completely out of reach by scoring into an empty net with 1:37 remaining.

“The fun? It’s just watching our young guys step up and start contributing at a rapid rate,” said Senators goaltender Craig Anderson, who stopped 37 of 38 Stars shots to improve his record to 3-1-1. “Guys have just come in and filled those roles, where maybe we weren’t expecting them too … and that’s fun watching these kids just go out there and have a blast.”

Anderson has played a big role in the Senators’ roll, too. Two games ago, his save percentage was .895. After wins against the Los Angeles Kings and the Stars, it’s up to .925.

As impressive as Stars forward stars had been to start the season, the early numbers from the Senators’ defence corps have also been shocking.

Lajoie’s second-period goal gave the Senators nine goals from their defence corps, more than any of the NHL’s other 31 squads.

Interestingly, Karlsson’s new team, the San Jose Sharks, were one of nine clubs that entered the week without any goals from defencemen.

How does any of that make sense? Between them, Karlsson and Brent Burns have combined for 190 goals in the past five seasons. Between them, the seven Senators defencemen in the lineup against the Stars on Monday entered the season with a total of 43 career goals.

“From Day 1 in camp, the coaches mentioned that they wanted the defencemen more involved and that’s a big thing for us,” the Senators’ Thomas Chabot said. “It has been good for our team. We’re helping our forwards out. Sometimes they don’t have any option out of the corner, and, just by jumping up, it gives them another option.” … Chabot’s streak of five consecutive games with at least one assist ended Monday, but he remains ranked second in scoring among NHL defencemen two goals, six assists, behind only Toronto’s Morgan Rielly … When will he pick up the nickname Mad Max? Lajoie leads the Senators in goals (four), power-play goals (two), shots (18) and blocked shots (13). After his first-period penalty, he also moved within two points of the lead in penalty minutes.

Stars defenceman Esa Lindell and goaltender Ben Bishop watch as Senators right-winger Mark Stone fires a shot off the outside of the net during the second period of Monday’s game.Adrian Wyld /
THE CANADIAN PRESS

ABOUT THAT STARS DEFENCE

One day, Klingberg might get serious Norris Trophy consideration. So smooth … Watching 19-year-old Miro Heiskanen play, it’s easy to see why the Stars would never include him in any package as part of a trade Karlsson.

Nice tribute by #Senators to Ray Emery, whose former girlfriend did a nice job in the singing of tonight's anthems. Emery's good friend Jason Spezza hung his head on the Stars bench after Emery tribute

The official attendance at Canadian Tire Centre was 12,358 … When anthem singer Keshia Chanté accidentally began O Canada with the first few words of the Star Spangled Banner, she apologized and started over. When she finished, fans applauded appropriately. Chanté, at one time the fiancée of the late former Senators goaltender Ray Emery, wore a Senators jersey with “Emery” on the back … The Senators presented a video tribute to Emery, who drowned near Hamilton during the summer, six minutes into the game. Spezza, Emery’s close friend and one-time roommate with Binghamton of the American Hockey League, was clearly moved while he watched from the Stars bench.

Senators forward Brady Tkachuk fires the puck wide of the net guarded by Stars goaltender Ben Bishop during the second period of Monday’s game.Adrian Wyld /
THE CANADIAN PRESS

GOOD PAIRS & THEN SOME

Asked about the offence from the defence, DeMelo said, “It’s very encouraging to know that we’ve got three defence pairs that can contribute.” Or, as was the case for the past two games, 3 1/2 defence pairs … Senators head coach Guy Boucher originally planned on the traditional 12 forwards and six defencemen against the Stars, but changed his mind following Saturday’s 5-1 win over Los Angeles. Nick Paul, recalled from Belleville last Friday, has been a healthy scratch for the past two games. At least he got to skate in the pre-game warmup Monday. With Max McCormick returning Monday after dealing with a groin injury, don’t be surprised if Paul is returned to Belleville for the B-Sens’ home opener Wednesday.

Maxime Lajoie has collected 4-3—7 through the first six games of his NHL career (1.17 P/GP).

After Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo’s first overall selection last June, registered his first NHL assist last week (setting up Nathan Beaulieu), the cameras surrounded him for a post-game celebration with the puck. When Senators defenceman Christian Jaros registered his first point on Saturday, assisting on a Colin White goal, he didn’t know about it until he was told after the game. “I was happy I got a point, but it was so lucky, too,” Jaros said. Jaros slid a pass to Lajoie in his own end and Lajoie flipped the puck into the neutral zone, where White picked it up and sped past the Los Angeles defence. “When I’m on the ice, my role is to not get the goal against,” Jaros said … Like Paul, Jaros could also be returned to Belleville. The B-Sens also play Friday and Saturday at home. Jaros played 9:54 against Dallas, lowest among the Senators’ seven defencemen. Cody Ceci, who has missed the two games because of injury, could return Saturday for the home game against the Montreal Canadiens.

Senators goaltender Craig Anderson celebrates in his crease in the final seconds of the third period as his team caps a 4-1 victory against the Stars.Adrian Wyld /
THE CANADIAN PRESS

THROWING DARTS AT A CALENDAR?

As bizarre as the Senators schedule is — they don’t play again until facing the Canadiens at Canadian Tire Centre — Boucher isn’t complaining. After a day off from practice on Tuesday, Boucher has a grand plan for the rest of the week, including a hard skating day and a day focused on special teams … Give the Senators credit for surviving the second period against the Stars. The Stars came to Ottawa after rolling over the Anaheim Ducks 5-3 on Saturday, including a 30-4 edge in shots in the second period. In their four games, the Stars had outshot opponents 70-33 and outscored them 10-5 in the middle frames. The Stars outshot the Senators 10-7 in the second period on Monday, but Lajoie scored the lone goal … While Bishop drew the start against his former Senators teammates, back-up Anton Khudobin has also gone without a regulation defeat against the Senators (6-0-1, 1.84 goals-against average, .946 save percentage).

This Week's Flyers

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.